Life is a battlefield, and Thank God It’s Wednesday

By Maria Solita Zaldivar-Guzman

We each have our battles but the most difficult one is the battle we fight alone, and within.

Once we are overwhelmed by problems, it triggers our inner battles, magnifying fear, worry, uncertainty, vulnerability, and despair. It obliviously affects our mental health and we are slowly consumed by depression.

We all have our battles with depression and with the emergence and hype of social media, it intensified. While many of us will not admit to getting or being depressed, we fall short of the façade and that is when it gets dangerous aside from tiring. Depression should be addressed at the onset of developing strong negative feelings that constantly thrive in our unconscious and affect how we feel, think, and act altogether.

It is often stimulated by feelings such as envy and jealousy toward other people who seem to be living perfect lives when in reality, no such thing exists. No life is perfect or is lived perfectly but accepting the imperfection makes it a blissful, stress-free, and wonderful life.

Many have embraced the wrong notion that if only they get to live the kind of life people have such as those of celebrities or influencers, high status quo individuals, and the likes, then they too will be happy. Truth is, happiness is a choice and some take it like a bitter pill to swallow because they are not content with what they have, who or where they are.

The reason why others find it difficult to be happy is because they believe that joy should be coated in grandeur when it is supposed to be the simple things in life. Oftentimes it is also the insatiability that even when we are given what we asked or prayed for, we become greedy for more. We believe that life to be at its best is having it all—even in contradictions—and as though it does not entail a single sacrifice.

Our battles within are not something new because they have always existed, just repressed from our consciousness and suppressed for the sake of our image, whatever the latter means or whether it even matters.

Admitting that we are on the brink of depression and that we need help—professional or not—is one way of winning over our inner battles. Knowing our battle and what we should do makes us half a winner; doing what we have to do and thriving makes us a conqueror.

We should refrain from feeling like a burden to others because those who truly care will go the extra mile to help us. In the same sense that we too are willing to do whatever it takes for the ones we truly love. When people help us even while they are struggling, that is not help—that is love. We should never fail to acknowledge their good hearts and be grateful for being on the receiving end.

Depression is real and no one is spared from it. Admitting we have our moments of misery does not make us less of a person, and being weak sometimes just means we are erring human.

Our inner battles need not have to be fought alone. Let us liberate ourselves by allowing people we trust, love, and care for to get involved. Let us be as considerate as possible to others who also have their battles. Life itself is difficult, let us make things more bearable lest it gets extremely hard for others to handle.

On this note, I would like to share with everyone again about Thank God It’s Wednesday (TGIW) which is a project of Glad Tidings New Life Kalibo. Every Wednesday, their group through the leadership of Pastor Edwin and Pastor Myrl Radones offers free coffee, bread, and conversation to those who are struggling with their lives at the moment, or to those who simply want to have someone to talk to. Some individuals come over to be prayed over or to be healed spiritually.

Since it was launched last May 10, 2023, TGIW has served 4,198 people and 454 of them have received counseling for the year 2023. Among those who attended TGIW, they mentioned that they have felt their burdens lighten after being able to share their thoughts and feelings. They also felt relieved and rejuvenated when the pastors prayed over them not just to enrich them spiritually but to help pray for the fulfillment of the desires of their hearts. Cliché as it may sound, they came and met each other as strangers, but left as friends and became part of a supportive network for the community.

The purpose of TGIW is rooted in a passion to create a compassionate, supportive, and empathetic community where individuals can freely express themselves, seek guidance, find comfort, and receive help through conversation and prayer. TGIW as a support group creates a safe space where affirmations, manifestations, and shared stories of outshining battles inspire and uplift each member, contributing to a more optimistic disposition in life and resounding across the community.